C.C. Chapman's Blog, page 11

Our Last Summer All Together

Time is flying by and while I refuse to start counting days, I know there are not many left.

Dylan begins college in the fall and the emotions that come with preparing for it have been hard and swinging.

We are a tight family. I hug and kiss my kids goodbye and good night every day. Our times together are generally full of laughs.

Laura asked that we go away together for her birthday. Booking a cabin for all of us to stay in the weekend before the college road trip begins brought the reality...

Watching My Kids Grow Up and Away

The moment you add an event to your calendar titled “Dylan & Dad’s College Road Trip” you know that emotions are going to be a bit messy.

Not as messy as last week when an entire week worth of Senior events was added including one titled “Dylan Graduates.”

We even had to go and buy him his first suit since he now has a date to his senior prom

Yes, my not so little boy is nearing the end of his mandatory education and headed into the next phase of his life.

He isn’t the only one growing up.

E...

Words and The Days To Come

Words have been hard to come by lately.

No, that isn’t exactly true.

There have been plenty of words, but I’ve been writing them down elsewhere. Leaving this spot alone.

They’ve been anger fueled and tinged with a layer of neon orange slime.

Not the words I want to share. Not the energy I want to throw out into the universe.

Did you miss them? Did you miss me?

Lorde is screaming about tennis courts, ribs and bravado as I hit the keys to share with you.

There has been a lot of anger in my sou...

Why I Chose To Be Part Of The Women’s March

Men and women are different. That doesn’t mean they shouldn’t be treated equally.

Around the globe this weekend, on all seven continents, millions of humans marched. Each who chose to show up did so for their own reasons.

My reasons were simple.

As a father, I marched to show my daughter that I support her. I wanted my son to see that a strong man is one who helps and supports others. As with everything, I lead by example.

As a male, I wanted all the women around me to know that I support th...

Paying For College

It is a proud moment in any parent’s lives when their child is accepted to college.

The moment our son received his acceptance letter to his first choice will never be forgotten. You get to check off another accomplishment proving that you did ok as parents.

Soon after the hugs and fist bumps were done the realization of the high price tag ahead got us thinking, “how are we going to pay for this?”

Back when our kids were born 529 college savings accounts were new.

While they sounded like a...

Stop Creating For The Algorithms

I’ve been outlining my keynote for next month’s IzeaFest and one of my scribbles reads “stop creating only to satisfy an algorithm.”

The more I pondered it and how I might represent it on a slide, the more I realized I wanted to write about this specific epidemic because it bothers me to my core.

There is a constant game being played for our attention. Dictator Orange Tinyhands is a master of making you look over here, while something you should be paying attention to what is happening in fr...

2017 Is Here. Now What?

The calendars have been flipped and 2017 is upon us.

A fresh start and we don’t know if the car is going to crash over the cliff, handle all of the curves or keep on driving off into the sunset.

I’m full of worries for the world around me. Anyone with half of an open mind would realize there is a pot of turmoil and upheaval boiling on the stove and soon it is going to start making a mess.

The holidays were full of quiet time away from screens and memories being made with those I love.

There h...

The Press Hotel – Inspired By Writing

Letters pour off the hallway walls as you walk to the elevator.

Typewriters hang on the wall and hold menus for you.

You are not in some hipster gin infused dream, but find yourself at The Press Hotel in Portland, Maine.

I awoke there recentlyand noticed that the desk chair had the familiar “The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog.” quote on the back of it. In the dark of night I had not noticed it. The first of the morning sun shined on it and the writer in me smiled.

Traveling the glo...

My 2016 in Photos

Out of all the things I create, I enjoy pulling together my year in photos the best.

Scrolling through all of the photos I take and share brings back memories of the little things I forgot. The trips that blend together. The faces, places and meals shared.

These roundups are not of my “best” photos, but the ones that stand out to me for one reason or another. I share them equally for you to enjoy and for me to remember.

Of course this is best viewed on any screen bigger than your phone, but I...

In The Holiday Giving Spirit

In our family, we know the importance of helping others.

Our kids have been exposed this their whole lives through various fundraisers and activities. They’ve walked 5k, climbed up stairs and seen me go on humanitarian trips.

When Heifer International reached out to me about partnering for a post about giving it was easy to say yes. Plus, I had never had anyone ask me to take a “goat selfie” before